The Daily Scope: Astrology for the Week of March 18

Sound the trumpets and beat the drums—spring is here! The sun blazes into the sign of Aries, and heralds the birth of the radiant child. With his fiery touch, he ignites the green to leap from branch to bower, from plant to flower. With uplifted arms full of birdsong, he calls for us to cast off winter’s garb for more gossamer garments.

Wednesday is the spring equinox, when day and night are of equal length. This marks the first of four solar stations, still points in the earth’s yearly procession around the sun. Our entire planet will experience a moment of ephemeral equilibrium, evoking an opportunity for exploring the dynamics of balance in our lives. This moment is also wonderful for consciously bringing the budding into our world: What fresh exciting experience is awakening? What wish and impulse for greater, greener growth?

The planet Mercury has finished his retrograde motion, returning to forward movement. Being direct, he incites communications to commence, thoughts to vivify, and projects to launch. As Mercury leaps forward, Venus (the planet of love) processes into passionate Aries, where she joins ardent Mars. The blood is hot, emotions rule, and the desire to conquer, whether in the boardroom or bedroom, is strong. Particularly in matters concerning love or money (or love and money!), there will be no compromises, no conciliations, no concessions, for this is a red-hot pairing that knows “love conquers all.”

The combustion continues to intensify as warrior Mars meets Uranus (the planet of revolution), bringing fire to freedom. As they unite their respective energies, they provoke Pluto (the planet of death and rebirth), who in his pique, enters the fiery fray. With this powerful planetary pugilism, we do well to keep our egos in check, strive for the greater good, and direct this fire to light the lamp of higher wisdom. What matters here is the power of the heart—both human and humane—that conjures the courage to embrace ferocious passion in order to fashion fire into flowers and love into beauty. This union, the profane with the sacred, ultimately reveals the radiance of the wild and tender heart.